Elfo del Loto
They're considered one of the four clans of aelves, believed destroyed during the Mirror Invasion and subsequent breaking 930 odd years ago. The Aelves are a race with many similarities to humans but also some noticeable differences. One of the most notable is how the aelven people are split into a set of castes. The caste system isn't a social one; there's no sense that one is superior to another. Instead it's as if a human was split into 4 distinct parts, each with a talent for a particular thing. The 'Ardaighs' (as the Rose Aelves call themselves) are the warriors, the shield of their people, the, doers and achievers of the now scattered aelfen nation. They are the caste of elves most commonly seen in the free lands. The Rose elves are the trunk of the elven clans, its workers, warriors and crafters; the backbone that has supported their nation since their creation in the sec- ond age. The Rose Elves are renowned throughout the Free Lands as a kind, courtly and utterly noble race. They are usually quick to offer aid, reluctant to accept help and possessing a confidence and bravery unknown among most of the other races. They are fond of battle, of physical activities and most are incurable romantics. This confidence and willingness to dive head first into danger has given them a certain reputation as foolish or perhaps as a race who leave the planning and thinking to others. They tend to act first and think things through later, a trait that has made them fantastic warriors and artists but awful tacticians and commanders. . With the exception of their oracles, they're famously unable to work magic. They can live for around 300 years, but most die far earlier, usually sacrificing themselves to aid their community or friends. It's said that each of the caste are born with a vision of their eventual death. They dream of it from time to time; of lying dying in a field of flowers or drowning in water. As it approaches, their eyes turn completely red and they begin to prepare themselves for their demise; taking their leave from family and saying farewell to friends. The somber Pwytho (as the Stitched elves call themselves) are a quiet gentle caste who tend to the scholastic, religious and magical needs of their people. Incredibly long lived (with lifespans stretching out as long as a millennia) they're in many ways the living history of the aelves and their wisdom was always consoluted before any great decision was made. The Stitched Elves are the gentlest of the castes, with a famous pacifism that stretches back to the second age. Despite their gloomy and, to be frank, evil appearance they are a saintly people who live a monastic lifestyle and offer succor to any who need it. Notoriously shy and modest, they rarely look directly at strangers butare always unfailing polite. As one Rose Elf explained ‘its hard for them to consider someone an acquaintance let alone a friend until they’ve known you for a few centuries’. They also have a well deserved reputation for gloominess and pessimism. If something can go wrong, chances are a Stitched Elf predicts it will with a long suffering sigh. The Eidhneán or firstborn, are a distant caste of the Elven race, one whose forms have been enhanced with wyld magic giving them an elemental appearance. . Created as the tenders, healers and rangers of the aelves, they succumbed to a dreadful magical plague at the beginning of the 3rd age, sacrificing their lives to contain it within themselves and ensure the other castes escaped. For eons the other aelves believed that they had been slain by the illness and vanished from history but recently they re-emerged and rejoined their brethren having spent ages slumbering silently; protected by the wyld magic of the Pottkin. As a result of this slumber, the ivy aelves are connected to the world around them in a manner more akin to flora., They are particularly affected by the seasons, becoming quicker and dynamic in the spring and summer and slower and more withdrawn as winter draws in. They are the most inhuman of the elves, more akin, at times to the trees and plants they love than the other castes and the rest of the Free Folk. They are quiet and observant with a rare ability to sit unmoving for hours at a time. The bonding with the wyld seems to have changed the way they think on a fundamental level. Where they were once architects and great builders with halls full of books on healing, now they simply ‘are’. They show little interest in great thoughts. They simply exist and help tend the land. . Since their rebirth it's impossible to guess how long their lifespan is. Most guess it's similar to that of a long lived tree. Lastly the Lotus aelves. The Lotus Aelves (once called the Paish) were the traditional rulers of the aelves. Their leaders and decision makers. They were... beautiful. Radiant even, with pale skin and gorgeous hair rich as the sky at midnight. In many ways they bridged the three other castes; almost as good at fighting as the rose aelves, almost as magically adept as the Stitched aelves and as creative and able to build great works as their ivy kin. They were adored by their cousins who willingly served them. Sadly all this energy and power came with a terrible cost; a vastly reduced lifespan compared to the others. Most Lotus aelves died in their 40th year, suddenly fading like a candle being snuffed out. It was seen as the tragedy of their race and many of them spent their short lives desperately trying to find a way to extend it somehow; never successfully. The caste vanished during the Mirror War, trapped and (presumably) destroyed when the Stone Kings erected the Storm Wall and cut the central kingdoms off from the rest of the world.